Austin, Texas is where this brutal and blackened Death Metal act called Whore of Bethlehem was formed back in 2009, Anno Bastardi. Whore of Bethlehem recorded their first demo, The Crowning Moment, in 2012 and started putting their name on the map of worldwide Death Metal. In early 2014 Whore of Bethlehem fought their way back to the studio with the intention of recording their debut full-length album.

In May, Upon Judas' Throne became available for everyone and what an intense and merciless package of Black and Death Metal it is. You can pile up names like Behemoth, Sacrophagus (the U.S. one and their Black Metal era, in particular), Morbid Angel and Angelcorpse like rotting corpses to get an idea how this Texas quintet sounds. The band employs strong riffs which make their songs powerful and crushingly heavy and, at the same time, utilize their ability to create dark and ominous atmospheres bringing pitch-blackness to their sound reminiscent of late 90's Swedish Black Metal bands like Dissection, Dark Funeral and Lord Belial. Whore of Bethlehem sound incredibly well rehearsed and confident.

Upon Judas' Throne is a solid first effort from Whore of Bethlehem and I am confident we'll hear much more from them in the future. Nothing can beat carefully crafted and tastefully done blackened Death Metal if you happen to be a fan of this Metal genre.